GoLite Versa Force shoe mens 10/10.5
new, unused in the box, 2007 model
$50 including shipping
I bought 2 pairs because I love the GoLite Sun Dragons so much and I couldn't find them ATT. The Versa Force has more of a running shoe heel which is a little higher than I like so I'm selling the 2nd pair.

Hi Carol. Unfortunately the wrong size for me, but I'm highly interested in your comment about them having "more of a running shoe heel". I too love Sun Dragons, hiked the whole PCT last year in them, starting with Sun Dragon I's and then doing most of the trail in Sun Dragon II's — which of course I can't buy now. So I'm looking at the options of Versa Force, Versa Lite, Trek Lite, Comp, Force, and Fire models … a bit to sort through.

Versa Force has the lowest listed weight, so I'd appreciate if you could expand on the "running heel" comment for those of us interested in Golite shoes.

I went ahead and bought a pair of Versa Force shoes in my size (11/11.5) on sale at $65, just came in today, so to some degree at least I can answer my own question. I just walked briefly around in my house with a Versa Force on one foot and a virtually new Sun Dragon II on the other foot. The heel on the Versa Force feels decidedly higher. I'll go for a walk today in the Versa Force pair and see how this feels when I'm not getting a step-by-step comparison, but certainly my first reaction is to prefer what I'm used to, the Sun Dragon.

I also note that the toe box for the same size shoe seems about 1/8" narrower on the Versa Force. I'm keenly interested in this, as a wide toe box is what I particularly like Golite shoes for. It's hard to measure this accurately, but holding them side-by-side and measuring across the widest part of the toe box on both in the same way shows the difference, and at first glance it just looked a little narrower. I'm not sure if this will bother me or not, and unfortunately, a narrower shoe is something that only starts to bother me after quite a number of miles.

The mesh across the toe seems similar but not the same — clearly it will breathe well. Unknown if it will rip out as fast. On each side of the shoe there's a little diagonal vent with what looks like literally fine wire mesh — this will breathe and drain very well in this little spot, though as a drain hole IMO it's placed a bit high on the shoes. I can't help but compare to the little round drain holes lower down on Vietnam-era jungle boots.

If I have much more to say about these, I'll repeat the above and add to it in the gear review section of this site.